The Time is Now

There is a newsfeed on our blog that keeps me up to date on the latest happenings in professional wrestling. One interesting article I came across speculated on the effect that the Hollywood writers strike would have on the WWE.

The writer speculated that the NBC network might turn to the WWE for additional programming to make up for the loss of The Tonight Show, Saturday Night Live, and others.

At the same time I thought that if this model proved successful, CBS might look into their affiliate network Spike TV about TNA programming.



If the strike lasts as long as projected, the WWE and TNA may receive major outlets for their programming. The question of whether or not the negative stigma related to the Chris Benoit murders and the related steroid probes will prevent networks and advertisers from looking towards professional wrestling is valid.

Let's assume however that the WWE actually does have the opportunity to benefit from added television time. Can WWE bring the goods?

Over the summer, Linda McMahon stated during a conference call that professional wrestling was about to hit another boom period. Since that announcement, Triple H, Shawn Michaels, The Undertaker, Rey Mysterio, and Ken Kennedy have returned from injuries.

Also since that time, Rob Van Dam and Booker T have left the company, and Bobby Lashley and John Cena have gone down to injury. So the question is, is the WWE in better or worse position than they were six months ago?

The answer is better, and the reason for that all looms on the horizon. If WWE is able to get three slots of network television time, they have three major events guaranteed to occur. The eagerly anticipated returns of Edge, Ric Flair, and Chris Jericho are all slated to occur sometime in the near future, and the timing could not be more perfect.

An interesting proposition would see classic wrestling as an option during this time. This is an interesting concept, indeed. The suggestion of the very best of Raw from the 1990's being available may overshadow today's product, or it could alternatively light a fire under WWE creative and remind the casual fan of what they enjoyed so much in the past.

I must admit I am not always the biggest "Stone Cold" Steve Austin fan. I think he was a better worker before he adopted the Stone Cold persona, and at times his act has grown tired to me. Still, during his confrontation with Santino Marella on Monday Night, all I could feel was magic, and I wished to myself that Austin had the ability to wrestle again.

Some critics are suggesting that Santino Marella's fantastic mic work over the past several weeks was all for naught because of the Austin confrontation. I couldn't disagree more.

Santino Marella has established himself as one of the most entertaining characters on Raw. A beer-spraying hose cannot wash that away. Just the opportunity for Santino to work with Austin elevates him. So what if Austin got a kick-wham-stunner on him. Who hasn't Austin done that too? The point is, Marella got under Austin's skin enough to bring Austin back to a WWE ring to confront him, and when Austin stood face to face with him, he was true to his convictions and never backed down.

Now Marella is positioned fantastically as the perfect antagonist to a returning Chris Jericho, and fans understand that the potential for classic mic work is outstanding. Marella doesn't have the character to be a main event caliber wrestler yet. However, as the green wears off and his comedy runs its course, he is going to be a very hot commodity as a serious title contender.

All Santino's program with Austin did was elevate him to bigger and better things. What if next week Santino was fuming about being embarrassed by Austin the week before? In a fit of rage, Marella announces that he is issuing and open challenge to anyone under a WWE contract for a match at the Survivor Series. All of the sudden, the countdown is on!

Another can't miss storylines for fans old enough to remember the good old days involves the return of "Nature Boy" Ric Flair. Since his WWE wrestling debut, fans have clamored for the storyline that sees Flair donning the big gold belt one more time.

While Flair currently seems far from the title picture on any brand, it will not take long to convince fans that Flair is ready and able for one last hurrah. Flair's return should see him gain convincing victories over major superstars and at the same time reestablish the figure-four leglock.

For those worried about Flair going over younger talent who are the future of the company, I would first suggest remembering how many guys Flair has attempted to help put over (although attempts with Kenny Dykstra and Carlito weren't all that successful). In professional wrestling, losing to Ric Flair is certainly not the type of thing that a wrestler will be unable to overcome in the future. If done right, A Flair for the Gold will convince anyone that Flair has the ability simply because of how bad he wants his final day in the sun.

How would I suggest they position Flair for his title shot? The same way they positioned him for the title during his first WWE run. Imagine the underdog Flair defeating 29 younger superstars at the Royal Rumble and choosing his own destiny at WrestleMania.

The current World Heavyweight Title picture is irrelevant, as WrestleMania is months away. Say the Undertaker defeats Batista at the Survivor Series and is positioned for a World Title Match with Edge at the Rumble. This is the perfect time for Batista to cost the Undertaker the belt and turn heel, as his babyface character has grown tired to many anyways. The Rumble can come down to Batista and Flair, who have a hell of a back-story of their own, and Taker can return the favor. Now you have two hot Smackdown main event matches. Perhaps and interesting twist would see Edge recruit his own pseudo-horsemen in the months leading up to WrestleMania. Arn Anderson would insist on helping Flair in his battles, but Flair would insist that this time he has to do it alone, and Arn would be left to struggle with respecting Flair's wishes and being the enforcer. He would reconcile those differences when he meets Flair in the ring to hug him and celebrate his title victory.

Flair would drop the belt the next month, most likely in a return match with Edge, but a unique and incredible WrestleMania moment was made, and Flair can retire with his legacy in tact.

The main problem I see is that outside of these returns, there is not a lot in the immediate future to look forward to on Raw. The Triple H-Umaga program has pretty much run its course twice now, yet it is still going on. The Randy Orton-Shawn Michaels program has no happy ending, as Michaels should not be regaining the belt right now, but he certainly needs to get his heat back from Orton kicking a field goal with his face and putting him out of action. So how does the Raw brand create exciting television outside of the return of Chris Jericho?

Well, one interesting prospect would involve the return of another major attitude-era superstar. If the WWE is looking to recapture the casual fan from the late 1990's, who better to bring back than The Rock. Now I know this seems a bit of a stretch, but with a major writer's strike in Hollywood, Rock's Saturday Night Live appearance has already been cancelled, and plans for any major movies he might have done could be on hold.

I would not suggest that Dwayne Johnson return in an active wrestling role for many reasons. He is not in wrestling shape. The risk of injury is high and unnecessary for him to take. Still, the Rock appearing and electrifying live crowds in a general manager role, bantering with Chris Jericho, Santino Marella, William Regal, Ron Simmons, and others is the recipe for good WWE television. I would think it a lot more doubtful had not the Rock appeared prior to WrestleMania to suggest that Umaga is Samoan for shriveled-up monkey penis.

To follow the momentum of events like Ric Flair, Edge, Chris Jericho, or even the Rock's return, you need to really establish your current and future guys as stars. That means having Cody Rhodes serving as Hardcore Holly's bitch is not going to cut it. That means having Shelton Benjamin and Charlie Haas jobbing to a makeshift tag team that no one cares about like Super Crazy and Jim Duggan is not going to cut it. That means having Snitsky, as a featured part of Raw, defeating jobbers in 30 seconds with a stupid pumphandle slam is simply not going to cut it.

For the love of God, if the WWE does get this opportunity and intends to take advantage of it CM Punk, Jeff Hardy, Mr. Kennedy, Umaga, Finlay, Matt Hardy, and MVP better come out the other side as huge stars.

If I had it my way, Shelton Benjamin, Lance Cade, Santino Marella, Val Venis, Jamie Noble, Elijah Burke, Beth Phoenix, and Victoria would be right there with them. What is it going to take for the WWE to write some good TV for these guys? With their look, charisma, and ability, it should be easy to get them over. Hell, the fact that they aren't over is blasphemous. Here is an analogy: If I was ever going to get an F in elementary school, I was going to have to try for it. Just showing up writing my name on the paper and taking the test would likely get me a C, even if I hadn't done any work prior. When it comes to these talents, WWE creative is getting an F… in elementary school… because you have to be trying to do THAT badly.

At any hot point in professional wrestling, you have great storylines in the main event and a hot exciting midcard full of guys you can see one day wearing the heavyweight title. Just because John Cena is sitting at home rehabbing a pectoral muscle doesn't mean that his theme music has no resonance in today's WWE landscape. If you work in the WWE offices, give a listen. Your time is up. The time is now!

If done correctly, this could be a hot as hell ECW World Title Match at WrestleMania 24:



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411wrestling's Fact or Fiction featuring PWP Founder Tim Haught

Welcome back to another week of 411 Fact or Fiction: Wrestling Edition! This week, two 411 NEWBIES go head to head as TG Corke and Tim Haught enter the 411 arena to do battle!

Let's get to it!

1. Batista winning the world title was a needed move.

TG Corke: FACT. With further elaboration necessary. In my opinion, Batista shouldn't have been in the main-event for Smackdown! for four billion consecutive pay-per-views. He looked like a choker time and time again, and it was getting to the stage where they could no longer justify him winning title shot after title shot against countless opponents. They swerved us with the idea of Rey vs. Khali one-on-one, which actually made me want Batista there. The reason this is Fact is because, though I wouldn't have booked Big Dave in all these matches, the fact is that he WAS booked in the match, and the way they booked him previously did require that he win this Sunday. He is no longer ‘Little Hennig' - he is a three-time World Heavyweight Champion. And, dick or not, he probably deserves it.

Tim Haught: FICTION. Was it a need move for Batista? Sure. Was it a needed move for the Smackdown brand? No f'n way. Even if the point is to transition the belt to a returning Edge, I would have rather seen Mysterio capture it, as at least he has a bit of momentum from his return. The David vs. Goliath showdown was actually more intriguing to me than the triple threat match, but I understand why they threw Leviathan in the mix. Now there isn't one in the lot of them that has any momentum on the Smackdown brand. In fact, the only guy that does is the Undertaker. I would rather have seen Taker unseat Khali and then start a long program with the returning Rated R Superstar.

Score: 0 for 1


2. TNA has done the right thing by announcing the Bound for Glory Card so early.

TG Corke : FICTION. I don't know that this is a definite Fiction. I do like that it's very different from the past few months, especially in the run-up to Slammiversary and Victory Road, where we didn't know what the final card would be FOR THE MAIN-EVENT until the last set of tapings. It's a nice change of pace. That said, this might not be the best way to start storylines. I don't know about you, but my traditional way of thinking is "Guy dislikes guy/is jealous of him >> Guys feud >> Match announced". Not "Match announced >> Do something till it happens". For that reason, I'm a little apprehensive about the possible build for this, though I'm still looking forward to the matches themselves. Except…what's with yet another reverse battle royal?

Tim Haught : FACT. I hate to be so argumentative, but seriously... TNA runs a PPV every month. We are either given something that feels like it has had no time to develop or something that we've already seen numerous times. In TNA, it appears as though guys create feuds just to have spots on the PPV. What are people even feuding over? This is how you can get bookers involved in wrestling without breaking kayfabe. The matchmakers have scheduled you together to determine who is the better man. One of you will climb the rankings, and the other will not. The tension and apprehension for the upcoming showdown has a month to build. Will it turn personal? Perhaps. This gives fans a basis for determining whether or not to purchase their pay per view far in advance. This also helps fans determine if which pay per view they will choose if they don't have the cash to throw down for both TNA and WWE. Smart fans read the spoilers and know the card in advance anyways. Why not let everyone in on what's going on?

Score: 0 for 2


3. By offering up a second straight DQ finish in a title match on PPV, WWE is sending the message to fans that they shouldn't care about the matches.

TG Corke : FICTION. WWE sent the message that we shouldn't care about those particular two matches. Look, I'm just as disappointed and enraged as a lot of you are, but think about it. Cena and Orton went to a DQ, Cena and daddy beat the shit out of Orton, and immediately afterwards a Last Man Standing match was booked for No Mercy. Argue all you want (and you should) about how ripped-off you were by a DQ in a highly-anticipated WWE Championship match, but to say WWE don't care about the matches AS A WHOLE when they've used one match to book a potentially much bigger match…that's a bit absurd. They probably should have had Orton/Cena on Raw the week after Randy booted Johnny Fabulous in the cranium, have the DQ there and lead to the Last Man Standing at Unforgiven (or not even HAVE a WWE title match at Unforgiven, build to No Mercy and allow Smackdown to take centre-stage in September). But, either way, they do care and it's heading towards something fun.

Tim Haught : FICTION. The DQ finish is building to something greater than the Unforgiven showdown between Orton and Cena. As I said earlier, if WWE plans on taking their top draw and having a no-finish, they should at least give fans something else worthwhile on the show. I'm sure they thought they were going to with the Batista title win and the Undertaker return. Booking wise, this makes about as much sense as possible. Orton kicked Daddy Cena's head clean off. Cena never got his revenge in a very personal feud. What are they going to do? Have Orton just beat him for the title? That would be pointless. Marks were waiting for Orton to get his, and they still are. Smarts are waiting for Orton to take the title from Cena. This Last Man Standing Match has something for everyone. I like that WWE is thinking long term, rather than booking for the short-term reward. This feud still has legs, and they should get all the money out of it that they can. If anything, the DQ finish should make fans care about the matches more. It's not about high spots and chair shots, it's about telling a story. When it's all said and done, Orton and Cena will have given you something you will remember.

Score: 1 for 3



---SWITCH~!---



4. Kurt Angle vs. Sting is the biggest match TNA can offer for Bound for Glory.

Tim Haught : FACT. Without looking outside of their current roster, Angle/Sting is the biggest thing TNA can offer at the moment. It's sad that despite these men's individual accomplishments, this has no big match feel whatsoever. It is simply another TNA main event at another TNA pay per view. The storyline that got Sting here was sloppily thrown together, and it can be argued that is not even the most logical contender to the title considering Black Machismo's recent clean victory over Angle. Still, Sting's value is greater than anyone else on the roster, and that includes Samoa Joe. While many fans would love to see Joe finally paid off with a World Title at Bound For Glory, he is simply out of position at the moment. TNA might have missed the boat on this guy the same way they did with Monty Brown.

TG Corke : FACT. I would take it a step further than that and say Sting IS the logical choice. Look, I love Jay Lethal and all (I think my first column proved that), but I don't want him anywhere near the main event. He doesn't need it, he's already the X-Division champion. Sting is probably the only guy on the roster who not only deserves the shot but needs it as well. What else was he going to do? Feud with Cage again so Joe could have another bite of the cherry? Feud with Joe so we got face/face in the upper-card and heel-heel in the main event? Put him in Monsters Ball with Joe and Cage and have Jarrett against Angle instead? No, the choice was a simple one as far as I‘m concerned. A year after his title win that turned out to be one of the worst transition jobs in any World Heavyweight Championship's history, Sting gets the honor once more in a match many of us have been longing to see for a while. Now, we can forget those two minutes they had on Impact! that ended in a No-Decision and enjoy our true contest.

Score: 2 for 4


5. WWE Unforgiven was the worst PPV of 2007.

Tim Haught : FACT. With fans currently debating whether or not it is the worst wrestling pay per view ever, Unforgiven is at this point in our calendar year the worst of 2007. Quite remarkable considering how many main events have had either Khali or Batista in them. Now, TNA has offered some particularly crappy shows of their own this year, but I still give the nod to this one because of expectations. Unforgiven 2007 was incredibly predictable. Despite the fact that WWE was able to throw together a relatively impressive card despite the recent Wellness-related suspensions, they failed to deliver. The stipulation in the Carlito/Triple H match has effectively ensured Carlito's midcard for life status. Batista and Mysterio's championship stock was relatively worthless going into this PPV, and having Batista take the title does nothing to make him a credible champion after his string of losses leading into this match. The Orton/Cena showdown is what sold this show, and fans were ripped off by the DQ ending. I am not trying to argue that DQ's should never occur on pay per view. The problem with Unforgiven was that WWE had nothing else to offer anywhere on the card to make up for this decision. That makes for a disappointment to smart fans and marks alike.

TG Corke : FICTION. But it wasn't exactly great, was it? I agree with most of what my esteemed colleague says here - it was a second consecutive poor effort from WWE which is somewhat unforgivable, the wrestling was average-at-best and little seemed to matter, especially with the DQ in the Cena/Orton match (though I stand by my earlier ‘Fiction' regarding WWE affecting our attitudes towards pay-per-view matches). However, the show was made worth watching, not value for money but worth watching, for Batista finally getting the belt back and Undertaker's return match, which I really didn't think was that bad. Most importantly, both of these things were considered a massive deal by WWE and the fans in attendance seemed to agree. Also, Triple H vs. Carlito was better than I expected, though I expected to be in tears watching it so that's not saying much.

No, the worst for me so far was WWE Summerslam. This was an event that promised so much and delivered so little. No titles changed hands that night, which nobody really expected and left a bad taste in some peoples' mouths CO*mine*UGH - although this in itself wouldn't be bad if it wasn't revealed to be due to creative's inability to come up with decent finishes for the main-events. We also had Triple H and Rey Mysterio returning on the same night to huge fanfare but very mild intake, again disappointing at best and disastrous at worst. The only highlights were an impromptu Stone Cold skit straight out of…Saturday Night's Main Event a couple of weeks before, and Orton vs. Cena (which was admittedly awesome). But, overall, Summerslam was worse than Unforgiven, in my opinion anyway. Also, bear in mind this was BEFORE any of the suspensions, so they don't have that to fall back on.

Score: 2 for 5


6. The Reverse Battle Royal at Bound for Glory will live up to it's predecessor and be the worst match of 2007.

Tim Haught : FICTION. Is the idea contrived and ridiculous? Of course. Is it TNA's worst idea? By no means. Are Battle Royal's supposed to be a showcase of fantastic work rate? Most certainly not. Am I personally a fan of Battle Royal's? Oh hell yes. My main gripe with this one is, it's likely to be a vehicle to get Samoa Joe back into the World Title picture, and quite frankly, we've been there and done that, and it's just not interesting anymore. Rather than clamoring for his eventual victory, I just quit caring. As far as being the worst match of 2007, I will say this. The Fight For Your Right match is likely to be an abomination if you are rating it on a scale of four-star classics. However, it has the potential to at least be a bit intriguing and entertaining, and that is much more than I can say for many matches I have watched this year.

TG Corke : FICTION. I will say immediately that this match should NOT be happening. It can only end badly, I'm sorry to sound so negative but the idea's already a bad one in theory and has proven to be similarly atrocious in practice. Having said that, they've tried it once and it was about as bad as it could get. I doubt even TNA will fail to improve on that showing. Knowing what they're getting into, I'm sure many of the athletes will have an easier time putting on a decent show. TNA make lots of mistakes, but they have to be confident this concept can work if they're willing to try it again on (what they consider) their biggest show of the year. Whether the buoyancy is justified is a matter that will only be settled once the dust has cleared, but for now…it SURELY can't be as bad as Ace Steele in a wig fighting a Rosie O'Donnell look-a-like on Raw to build a hair-versus-hair contest between Vince McMahon and Donald Trump, can it? I highly doubt it, and that's the crux of why I've deemed this Fiction.

Score: 3 for 6


These two finish 3 for 6! Join us next week for more Fact or Fiction!

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A Suitable WWE Alternative: The McMahon Plan to Put TNA Out of Business

CM Punk is a World Heavyweight Champion. Regardless of what brand he is a champion of or the circumstances surrounding his win, at the end of the day CM Punk has a World Heavyweight Title around his waist.

Is that enough to satiate the ever-critical Internet Wrestling Community? Likely not.

Is it enough to get more fans watching the ECW brand? Probably still likely not.

Much like Samoa Joe, CM Punk lost the payoff match that would have made his title reign significant. Due to a wellness policy suspension, he is afforded the luxury of keeping the belt warm for the impending return of John Morrison. This makes him a glorified Ronnie Garvin in the annals of wrestling history.

Punk's title win came at a TV taping, and was spoiled on WWE.com before it aired on the poorly rated ECW on Sci-Fi.

The WWECW experiment has been an interesting one to say the least. Beginning with Rob Van Dam's title run, the brand has experienced nothing but issues. It's hard to determine what WWE's actual plans were for the brand, as additions of RVD, Kurt Angle, and the Big Show imply that they expected the brand to draw on it's own.

All three of those aforementioned wrestlers are gone. Bobby Lashley took the ball, but when he ran with it, he often ended up on the Raw brand. Lashley was removed from ECW and stripped of the World title, but fans kept hope with the announcement that Chris Benoit would be putting on fantastic matches with young athletic workers. We obviously all know how that turned out.

Outside of Morrison and Punk, the supporting cast of ECW wrestlers is a veritable who's who of wrestling jobbers as ECW originals Balls Mahoney, Nunzio, and Tommy Dreamer haven't won a match in recent memory. Wrestlers receiving half-pushes like Stevie Richards, Kevin Thorn, The Miz, and Big Daddy V are hardly anything to get excited about.

This leads to the ECW World Heavyweight title having a feeling of being more on par with Raw's Intercontinental title or Smackdown's United States title.

TNA on the other hand has somehow been able to keep the big belt feel around their World Heavyweight Title. Kurt Angle, Sting, Christian Cage, Samoa Joe and others have all been built to be legit title contenders.

Despite the fact that the logic of having Kurt Angle lose clean to Jay Lethal to return and defeat Abyss is seriously flawed, the belt itself only moderately suffers. The main argument of most wrestling fans would be that Lethal should now be considered the number one contender. I agree, but would rather personally not see Angle squash Black Machismo to get his heat back.

Still, TNA has it's own fatal flaw. TNA's purpose in the wrestling game is to provide an alternative to the WWE. When I started watching wrestling in 1989, the NWA/WCW provided a suitable alternative with a different and often superior in-ring product.

Years later, when WCW acquired Hulk Hogan and other former WWE stars and looked, sounded, and felt more like their competitor, Extreme Championship Wrestling stepped up and truly did something unique in the world of wrestling, blending world class grapplers, unique high flyers, and hardcore wrestling.

Since the original ECW folded, many have come and tried to rekindle the magic. XPW and CZW have appealed to a specific type of fan, but they have been unable to capture the imaginations of America the way ECW did. One might suggest that they're overboard tactics and sort of lower class, if not dirty, feel has a lot to do with their lack of mainstream marketability. If ECW was comparable to edgy magazine Playboy, XPW and CZW are BSDM specialty mags.

Undoubtedly, pro wrestling fans have been looking for something new and different. For some fans, this is found in Ring of Honor. To make another analogy, if WWE were beer, ECW is WWE Lite, and TNA is WWE Ultra Lite. Ring of Honor is Natty Light. Cheaper, but at least it tastes a bit different. Fans are looking for a Miller to compete with their Bud, and have been since the dissolution of WCW and the original ECW years ago.

With TNA shoving VKM, Black Reign, Rhino, Team 3D, and various other WWE rejects down the collective throats of their fans, it has appeared at times that they might get rid of the X Division entirely. Obviously the TNA brass doesn't understand what brought them to the dance.

So why doesn't a millionaire-wrestling mogul like Vince McMahon understand that there is a demographic he is not reaching? After all, there is a great deal more money to be made.

Jim Ross has recently stated in his Barbeque Blog that "ECW is still a work in progress and the final form it eventually takes could be termed as ‘still to be determined.' I am not a major fan of a weekly hardcore or extreme rules match because they cease being special if one sees them every week and these matches increase the odds of a wrestlers getting injured. With the overall lack of quality depth available, injuries should be avoided when they can."

While many fans cannot accept this, I am perfectly fine with it. I grew tired of WWE style hardcore matches, and I detested watching bums attempt to recreate and outdo them on the Indy circuit. I don't want anyone to get seriously injured for my dollar. That is not why I am a wrestling fan.

So what can the WWE do to reinvigorate the ECW brand and provide the alternative that TNA is failing to be, essentially shutting them out of the market entirely?

Well, the first step is to get a deal for ECW to move to a different network. ECW is handcuffed by their Sci-Fi affiliation, as characters like The Boogeyman and Kevin Thorn must be there to grab any type of crossover audience from the network itself.

If ECW could score a deal with FSN, FX, or another network with a more general theme and a larger audience, it would benefit them greatly. I personally am unable to watch ECW on the television in my room, because we only get digital cable on one TV in the household.

The second move would be straight to Thursday nights to compete directly with Total Nonstop Action Impact! What is a bigger slap in the face than to send your third and lesser brand into direct competition with your rival? Writers and wrestlers would both be expected to step up their performance.

The next step is to introduce a Women's Championship to Smackdown. This will undoubtedly be the most controversial point. However, Victoria is on the brand, and she is undoubtedly the most talented wrestling diva in the company. She would like to see a belt there, and I would like to be her unconditional love slave. Therefore, what Victoria wants, Victoria gets.

Plus, this opens up the option of taking the Cruiserweight title off of Smackdown and moving it to ECW. Along with the title, any wrestler from any brand who is considered a cruiserweight should be moved as well. This would place Daivari, Santino Marella, Super Crazy, Funaki, Chavo Guerrero, Shannon Moore, and Jamie Noble all on the ECW brand.

Cruiserweight title matches would be contested under a highflying, hard-hitting cruiserweight style. One huge difference between WWE and TNA is TNA lets their X Division separate itself from the rest of the program, while WWE essentially has smaller guys working a heavyweight style for a cruiserweight title.

Other wrestlers who might be considered for movement to the ECW brand depending on their storyline involvement on their respective brands would be the Hardyz, Rey Mysterio, and Kenny Dykstra. These men would be ECW World Title contenders.

The ECW World Heavyweight title would only be contested under extreme rules, which can mean as much or as little as the performers involved want it to mean. There was a great difference between Jerry Lynn/RVD matches and Tommy Dreamer/Raven matches in the old ECW. Still, it gives wrestlers the option of pushing the envelope in matches where it would be worthwhile to do so, i.e. World Heavyweight title matches.

Now that pay-per-views are tri-branded again, the ECW brand would actually be set apart and provide one or two unique and exciting matches for each.

All members of the ECW roster should wrestle with a hardcore mentality. This does not necessarily mean Extreme Rules. Kurt Angle's intensity upon joining the ECW brand, and Big Show's attempt to work a different style and use a new move set while in ECW were fantastic examples of what I mean. Hardcore doesn't necessarily mean going through a table. It's about wrestlers pushing themselves to the limit.

It's likely that a reworked ECW could destroy TNA's market share, as WWE would provide a suitable alternative themselves. If done correctly and given a more legit feel, it may also attract some of the ever-growing MMA audience.

Without a doubt, it would increase ratings, increase merchandise sales, and give fans a reason to once again chant ECW, ECW, ECW!

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Why I am Tired?

I haven't been posting much recently. At this time last year I was at the height of my resurgence in wrestling fandom, having latched onto TNA and the rising company they seemed to be at the time. Since then I have gone a year of watching the wrestling industry from a TNA fan perspective.

I admire what Vince's company does but for me the real wrestling was over at TNA. But then something happened. Shortly after Slammiversary TNA took a direction I haven't been happy with, basically making the show the Kurt Angle hour. I love Kurt but when TNA has such great talent every Impact does not have to be Angle-centric.

Anyway I recently went to a local NWA event here in PA. The guys there put on a fantastic show, utilizing a ring that looked like it could fall apart at any minute. The culmination was when Sure Shot Shawn Reynolds (Better than you since 1982) dove off a ten foot ladder onto a table to cover "Dirty" Don Montoya for the win. These guys have no TV contract. Reynolds is a local police officer by day and does this only for the thrill of the 70 or so people that filled into the hot Salvation Army gym on that night. Now don't get me wrong, I am by no means suggesting that these little Indy guys with limited move sets should be my Thursday night programming but rather that TNA should utilize what it has.

Guys like AJ Styles, Chris Sabin, Alex Shelly, Christopher Daniels and Jay Lethal are all being tragically wasted because TNA management feels they need to spotlight Angle for 90% of the show. I don't tune into Impact to watch Angle sunbathe in his underwear, while talking to his therapist (Kevin Nash). I tune into Impact to watch high Impact wrestling. Yet all I really get is Angle and Joe or Angle and Sting (and I love Sting) over and over each week. It is time for TNA to turn up the product or get out of dodge because frankly I'm just tired of the same old, same old.

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Devaluating the Titles: A World Championship Just Can't Catch A Break

I had asked this question in a previous column, but it bears repeating again. Remember when titles actually meant something in Pro Wrestling? It seems like ages ago, and it's just not with WWE. TNA has been guilty of this also, and when the opportunity came for them to do something about it, they completely flushed it down the toilet.

From the start in TNA, they had control over the NWA World Heavyweight and Tag Team Titles. They didn't want the Board Represented Champions to be their Champions on PPV, so they vacated the titles. It's a shame seeing as how they stripped Dan Severn of the belt to give to Ken Shamrock, when fans had been wanting to see them meet since 1998. To my knowledge, Severn never had a chance to appear in TNA at all. What's even more of a shame is the fact that they vacated the World Tag Team Titles, held by the Shane Twins (fans may remember them better as The Gymini.) Why, you ask? They worked for TNA right off the bat, although someone thought it would be hilarious to dress them in bodysuits and masks, call them The Johnsons, and make a bunch of dick jokes.

So they wanted to form their own identity and establish their own stars and own Champions. Well that's fine and all, but the wrong thing to do if you're leeching off the lineage of the NWA World Title. Honestly, who could blame them. They got more out of the deal, than the NWA did. They had complete control over the booking of the belts. They didn't have to worry about booking workers from other NWA Promotions, just the Promoters themselves (Jim Miller, Bill Behrens, Bert Prentice, Rich Arpin, etc.) Their contribution to the NWA was advertising show dates on a ticker during their PPVs, and even that didn't last long.

The NWA didn't make this any better for themselves. The NWA North American Championship was still controlled by the NWA Board, and they wanted the belt back when Champion Quinn Magnum was unable to make defenses because of injury. As a result, Magnum dropped the title to Paul Atlas (I should mention that I was a stablemate of Atlas at the time and did a run-in on the match) who, as talented and deserving as he was, was used as a Transitional Champion to drop the belt to a TNA guy. Bringing him in to job to Jorge Estrada at that year's NWA Anniversary Show was cheaper than Fed-Exing the belt (and that is a shoot.) They showed a 30 second highlight video of the show and made mention of Estrada winning the belt, but was it ever shown or defended on TNA?

Before the deal, NWA Affiliates would bring in the Board's Champions for shows on occasion. After TNA kicked off, who could afford to bring in Jeff Jarrett for an Indy appearance. To my knowledge, there was only one instance of this where Jarrett defended the belt on an NWA Virginia Card. Hell, the World Title Matches wouldn't even take place on the NWA Anniversary Shows. When Raven was the Champ he dropped the belt to Jarrett on a non-NWA card in Ontario. Actually, to this day, it still follows, as the finals of the NWA World Title Tournament took place on an IWA Puerto Rico card.

Back to what this column is really about, post NWA/TNA split. Despite the fact that Kurt Angle won the NWA World Title in Christian Cage's last defense (the night that the NWA announced the split) the title was held up due to a controversial finish. Okay, fine… Who wins the title when they decide a new Champion? Kurt Angle. Okay, then what was the point of vacating the title in the first place? Then comes the match where all titles were on the line and Samoa Joe, already the X Division Champion, wins the Tag Team Titles. Instead of Angle and Joe becoming the Tag Team Champions, Joe holds both belts on his own and doesn't defend them until the next PPV match with Kurt Angle. I cannot begin to describe how big of a problem I have with one man holding a Tag Team Title on his own. WCW was infamous for this, as they did this numerous times. Heck (edit) I would have been happy with Samoa Joe and Judy Bagwell as the Champions. Okay, not really, but still…

Next month Kurt Angle beats Samoa Joe in the match that everyone was sure was made just so Joe could finally win the big one, but instead we have Kurt Angle holding the World, Tag Team, and X Division Titles all on his own. He's then booked to defend them all at (insert PPV Name here.) Did Angle or Joe even defend any of these titles in the last two months leading up to this? I get that they were looking to do something unique by having Angle defend 3 different Championships in 3 different nights, and hopefully draw some interest to the event, but they backed themselves into a corner so far that the only direction they could go is down.

Match one of the night: Kurt Angle and Sting defending the Tag Team Titles against Ron Killings and Pacman Jones. Why was this match made in the first place? I'll save the fact that they had to release 3 guys to pay for Pacman's Salary for another rant, but why when you have a solid Tag Team division with numerous worthy contenders? Why not LAX, Team 3D, MCMG (edit) Triple X, The Steiners, VKM, or Shark Boy & D-Ray 3000? (Okay, my timeline's off a bit on the last one) Now I didn't see the actual PPV itself, and this is going just by reading the report of the show, but Killings wrestled the match himself for the team. Angle turns on Sting, lays him out with the Angle Slam, and Pacman gets tagged in and pins Sting. Great…

First professional match ever, and you go over on two of the biggest names in wrestling history, one of them you get a clean pinfall on without having to break a sweat or take a bump. This may not necessarily end up being the case, but not having to pay dues usually leads to guys getting massive egos. I guess time will tell with that. It's not like Sting gave the rub to Pacman because it didn't help his credibility by being able to beat the legend. He was just in the right place at the right time. If anyone should have gotten the rub from Sting, it's Christopher Daniels. All this match accomplished was getting the titles off of Angle & Sting, which they shouldn't have been on in the first place. It's nice that Killings at least got something out of this, but hopefully we can get the titles on a real team sometime soon.

Match two of the night: Kurt Angle vs Jay Lethal for the X Division Title. Lethal gets the upset here and rolls Angle up when he attempts an Ankle Lock. This is good for Lethal, as it is certainly the biggest win of his career. However, he didn't have the momentum, desire, and emotion going into the match as he did when he was chasing Sabin for the belt. His momentum was gone when he lost the belt to Joe one night after the initial title win. So the only purpose of him losing it was to do the stupid storyline with Angle getting all the belts. Hopefully Lethal can use the win over Angle to project himself even further. I really like the Black Machismo gimmick and I want to see him do well.

Match three of the night: Kurt Angle vs Abyss for the World Title. He's already 0-2 at this point, and having him lose the belt to Abyss here would be the best thing for the Title's credibility. Does it happen? Of course not. Angle makes Abyss tap out. So we're supposed to believe that Kurt Angle is still the best wrestler in TNA because he's the Heavyweight Champion of the World, yet he lost two matches in the same night prior to retaining that title. The announcers put it over as he kept the one that mattered. I don't think so. All it means to me is that Jay Lethal should have been the one challenging for the World Title and not Abyss. It would have been a little more believable and credible if Angle couldn't get the job done against Abyss but was able to retain the X Title over Lethal. I know Angle is their new top dog and they're content on pushing him to the moon, but they just derailed his momentum by jobbing him out prior to the Main Event. Sure, you could argue that this is similar to Bret & Owen Hart at Wrestlemania 10 prior to Bret beating Yokozuna for the World Title, but I'm sure Lethal isn't going to get a World Title shot because he pinned Angle.

While it was a breath of fresh air to see someone other than Triple H with the WWE Title, fans are now tired of John Cena being shoved down their throats. The same can be said about TNA. While it's nice to see someone other than Jeff Jarrett at the top of TNA, the fans are soon going to start resenting Kurt Angle as their Champion. And the sad thing is the victim in all of this, is the TNA World Title. Not a good sign going into a two hour timeslot, now is it? More on This Story...

Well, that's retarded...

Believe it or not, Eugene being released from the WWE may just have been the best thing to happen to his career. Why, you say? Well were was his career prior to this? When was the last time Eugene challenged for a singles title? When was the last time he got a PPV Payday? It's sad because Nick Dinsmore was one of the most talented prospects to come out of OVW. Chris Benoit went down to work a match with him, and after Dinsmore held his own and then some with the Rabid Wolverine, Benoit told Danny Davis he was every bit as good as he said he was. The sky was the limit for him, and he eventually got called up for the opportunity of a lifetime…

As Uncle Eric's retarded nephew…

I questioned the logic of this first. In all fairness, this seemed like a logical choice in the beginning. It was something different. It was something fun. It was something the kids could enjoy just as much as adults. But once the new car scent wore off, what else was there to do with him? He couldn't be a main event player or a serious singles champion under this gimmick. He was cursed with the gimmick of a simpleton with no way out. Many had been in this rough of a spot before and survived, but for him there was no going back. He was stuck with "The Eugene Curse."

What's funny is CM Punk almost suffered the same fate under the "Eugene Curse," as he was slated to debut with a gimmick where he was a deaf wrestler. Had this happened, he most likely would not be your ECW Champion today . He'd be pretty hot for about a month or two, then go from jobbing on heat to getting an honorable mention on WWE.com wishing him the best in his future endeavors.

Ironically enough, I essentially was doing the Eugene gimmick in Pro Wrestling Xpress about 6 months before Eugene showed up on WWE TV. Because I wasn't wrestling on a National stage, it just made me look like a copycat. But the difference was I was acting goofy, picking fights with wet floor signs, and carrying around a Bob The Builder backpack because I took too many chairshots and got a concussion every show. I simply stopped taking so many shots to the head and returned to normal. With Mr Dinsmore, it was genetics.

Sure, the Eugene character has filled us with some unforgettable moments over the years. Who could forget WWE Musical Chairs during his brief tenure as General Manager of RAW? Plus, without him we never would have learned that Matt Stryker loves poop.

Luckily for him, the sky is once again the limit. He's a talented performer with name value. He can make a pretty decent living just working the Indies. I just hope that he's smart about it…

What he should do...

- Get involved in the NWA Title Picture. Since the NWA broke away from TNA, they've gotten their hands on two of the biggest named Independent Contractors in Bryan Danielson and Brent Albright to try to get their World Title some credibility. While I'm sure Adam Pearce is talented and worthy of being the NWA's Top Titleholder (although I'm not familiar with his work at all) I don't think he's exactly the household name you want to be promoting as your World Champion. The NWA World Title needs recognizable names to go along with it. Mr. Dinsmore could be one of them.

- Open up a training school. Why the hell not? He was responsible for training so many of the OVW names that went on to the WWE. While some of them may no longer be employed, he's still responsible for training some talented workers.

Here is what he should not do...

- Sign with TNA. Even if they are getting a second hour for Impact, their roster is already overcrowded with former WWE names who have lashed out against their former employer and burned their bridges. The sad part is though, that half of them pretty much recreated their old WWE gimmicks (Team 3D, Platinumdust or whatever he is called) and it just seems like a cheap parody. The last thing we need is a 2nd rate Eugene gimmick. Then again he could join the other half that shoot on their old gimmicks and try to be themselves. This wouldn't be so bad, but he's just going to get lost in the TNA shuffle.

- Work for Ring of Honor… or any other promotion that runs in the Philly area. Those fans are brutal and will completely boo him out of the building. Remember Jeff Hardy's ROH run? Probably not, and there's a reason why.

Regardless of what happens, Nick Dinsmore is out of gimmick purgatory and has a chance to re-establish himself as a legitimate wrestler. Who knows, maybe we'll see him get resigned in the future and become the major player that he was destined to be…

Or he could go back to being Eugene, showing us all what a retard he truly is... More on This Story...

Tag Team Action on TNA Today 8/29

More on This Story...

It's All About the Wrestling: I'm Bored

I haven’t written much recently and although I haven’t there is a reason for that. That reason is boredom. I watch TNA, that is no secret, and I have very little love for the product WWE has put out recently, also no secret, but what may not be known to most people is that I am bored with wrestling, in particular TNA’s product. For me, when I got back into wrestling last year, TNA was offering me something different. Now they are offering me the same thing every week and that is not a good thing.

For the last few months in particular, although this started at about the new year, we have had Joe vs. Angle in some form or another every week. Sometimes they were pitted against each other, other times they are put together to overcome a common goal – with the express purpose of making them hate each other more. TNA offers roughly seven hours of on air programming a month, close to half of that is spent focusing on Joe and Angle. Sure, every once in a while I get Sting (like tonight vs. Robert Roode) and I do get Christian Cage almost every week in some form or another but for me I need more.

Sure Angle and Joe is great but I’ve seen it now for almost a year. I understand the desire to tell season long storylines but we need something more from TNA as well. What I need and what TNA needs is another 60 minutes a week. They need to be able to showcase their other talent; talent like Chris Sabin, Jay Lethal, Christopher Daniels (who they have wasted), AJ Styles, and their tag teams. If they can give me these guys wrestling as well their big storylines, maybe then I won’t be bored.

Sorry for the scattershot post this week but I just wanted people to know why there has been a lack of content from me recently.

As always you can e-mail me with your questions, comments and flames at pwp.chris@gmail.com. I’ll catch you next week. More on This Story...

Do you watch "TNA Today"?

If not, then why?



For the most part, it's entertaining. It helps tie Impact together at times and gives a little time for the guys that, may only be on once a month otherwise. More on This Story...

It's All About the Wrestling: Frustrated

I'm frustrated. I tune in to watch TNA each week but instead of them advancing forward they seem to be stepping to the side. TNA had a chance to push forward with their company at their recent pay-per-view by awarding Samoa Joe the title but instead Kurt Angle wins it. Kurt won the title a month ago, why take it away from him only to give it back to him a month later. I feel cheated. Not only does Kurt winning the title not advance TNA at all it makes me feel like I wasted an entire month prepping for the big King of the Mountain title only to have Kurt win the title again.

As much as I enjoy TNA and the wrestling they put on, over the last six to nine months they have made some decisions I can only scratch my head at. The announcement that Kurt Angle was going to come to TNA was huge and had me jumping in joy that TNA would be jumping to the mainstream. But that hasn't happened. In fact by my opinion TNA is worse off than they were before Kurt came in.

At this point I'm not sure what they can do. The rumored announcement of a second hour of programming would be a start.

Sorry for the short article this week, I'm busy with deadlines elsewhere. As always feel free to e-mail me at pwp.chris@gmail.com. More on This Story...

I'm not dead

Man, ECW is still way better than TNA. I don't mean to be the typical antagonist, but I had a hard time watching TNA Thursday night. Here's what I got: Jim Cornette has some announcements that will change the face of wrestling, it involves Samoa Joe, Sting, and Kurt Angle, and they'll wrestle each other tonight? No? I've heard that's the format the TV tends to follow every week. I believe there was seven minutes of combined wrestling time on this show.

I've always been a fan who leans more towards the wrestling side rather than the entertainment side, so ECW's Tuesday night show was a real treat. They had the ECW World Title on a pedestal at ringside, with each participant in the tournament walking by, looking at it, touching it, the entire time the commentators are putting over how important the championship is. I loved it.

Last night, I saw a fantastic Matt Hardy-Finlay match. Is anyone more ready for a main event run than Matt Hardy? I can remember his feud with Rey Mysterio carrying the show a few years back and no one has looked better in recent memory. I thought Jeff's return would hamper Matt, but it really made both of them superstars again. Here's to hoping Matt gets a nice, long main event run. And isn't it perfect timing that Edge is the World Champion on his brand?

Wrestling for me, personally, has been going well. I've opened my own company, Pro Wrestling Dynasty (http://www.myspace.com/pwdynasty) and I've been keeping busy with shows all over Florida and Georgia. You can check out my own MySpace @ myspace.com/daronsmythe.

I miss ya buddy. More on This Story...

It's All About the Wrestling: Mailbag Edition

OK so last week I wrote about the Dudleys and how I thought they were over-rated and how I also wouldn’t be adverse to them leaving TNA to return to WWE because their shtick has gotten old. Evidently people have quite an opinion on the Dudley’s both for and against and since I am feeling extra lazy this Father’s Day evening I am going to share with you a few of my e-mails and maybe a little response here and there.

The first one comes from William and he writes:

“I just got done reading what you had to say about the dudleys on
wrestlinginc.com. And as someone who would normally defend a team like the dudleys, I sadly have to agree with everything you said. I thought that the dudleys and TNA would be fit so when I heard that they where there I was happy as could be, but its just been one disappointment after another with these guys. TNA gives them a lot freedom to say and do as they please and they just blow it. It's just sad. Come up with something new and not play out or go back to WWE, were they like that kind of thing. Oohhh Testify.”

The Dudley's tenure in TNA has been a total waste and while some will place the blame on TNA management the Dudley's are responsible for their in ring performance and it just is not up to snuff. Management and the booking committee can only be held responsible for so much and they certainly can be blamed for the fact that Dudley's have never evolved any further. Sure get the tables is entertaining but I (and more than likely you) have been watching the shtick for the last 10 years or so. It was stale when they left the WWE and it is still stale now.

Our next one comes from Jean and he thinks I am very short-sighted but yet wants to applaud me (oh wait that was just me reading it wrong):

“I am appauled that you would have such short sightedness regarding the Dudleys. They ARE one of the greatest tag teams in pro wrestling today, including the tables segments. If they are successful in coming back to WWE it will be a great day because all of us fans have missed seeing them on WWE. As for TNA, I personally don't think they were given even half a chance to really shine like they did when they were on WWE.”

My eye doctor does tell me I am blind but I don't think it is in regards to the Dudleys but more due to the fact that I actually can't see. Sure I will concede that the Dudleys are one of the greatest tag teams in pro wrestling today but that is because there aren't to many legitimate tag teams, let alone ones with a "legacy" like the Dudleys. I hope for your sake, as a fan of the Dudleys, that if they do end up returning to the WWE that they entertain you guys like never before but TNA has given them every opportunity to entertain me. Their mic skills have always been weak and they have never evolved past punch, punch, kick, kick, whazzup and get the tables. For me I just require a little more.

While Jean may not really want to applaud me Dave here might:

“I am what many would call an old school wrestling fan. Unlike most people I grew up with the likes of the Von Erichs and the NWA. Now I am not trying to be one of those old school guys who is like wrestling today is crap and I watched it when it meant something, more of letting you know that I am not some hack who is saying this, but someone who loves this sport. So well done on the article about the Dudley's. I am so glad that someone else sees this. They are one of the most overated tag teams out there. They have two moves the 3D and tables o and they punch you. Who remembers them at the very first ECW pay per view when they went up against a team that I actually believe is one of the most underatted teams ever the Eliminators? They had about 3 minuets of offense and then they got destroyed. I can not believe that TNA choose this team over the naturals or to break up AMW. This is once again proof to me that TNA is missing the point buy trying to win people over by putting over big names or suppossed big names instead of doing the one thing that I loved about them which was winning us over by wrestling.

That is my rant...thanks for writing the truth!”

It's nice to see an old school wrestling fan who has made the transition to the modern era. Tag team wrestling has been suffering a slow death. When I started watching TNA (about a year ago now) what I enjoyed the most was that TNA had wrestling, and not only did they have wrestling but they had a strong tag division. That division has since been decimated and they seem hell bent on pushing over the Dudleys. The best thing for TNAs tag division would be for the Dudleys to leave and go back to WWE. I know that doesn't make much sense, being as it would further weaken the division but I seriously think TNA should rebuild from the ground up. Keep LAX, the Outlaws, the Steiner Brothers (hoping that Scott can wrestle again), the Bashams, reunite AMW and team up Christian and AJ and I think you would have a really strong tag division.

Buddy chimes in but it seems he just has respect for the Dudley’s as people:

“I can not believe you as a wrestling fan can sit there, and say that Team 3d is overrated. They are one of the best ever. They rank up there with Road Warriors, Tully and Arn, and many others. They helped change the way we looked at tag team wrestling. They are the only team from those triple threat tlc matches to already be an established tag team. EandC, and the Hardys are great, but they needed the dudleys to be where they are. I believe that they are the worst of the three teams but they are great. They do this business because they love it. To many people do it for fame, not them.”

You can't seriously consider the Dudleys in the same league as the Road Warriors. Devon and Bubba Ray can't even hold Hawk and Animal's jock straps. I just got the WWE Ladder match set and watched the early TLC matches (the first three), the Dudleys were the weakest team in the matches. They would punch and kick there way to an advantage, loose said advantage and then reappear later in the match to have Devon headbut someones crotch and then get the tables.

I myself have never actually met either of the Dudleys but I have heard they are really nice guys and I have no doubt that they love what they do but being nice and loving your job don't make you good at it. I feel the Dudleys have become as big as they are due to the weakness of tag wrestling in general over the last 10 years. There just aren't great teams like there used to be.

I do think Buddy eventually came around to my way of thinking, maybe not:

“agree. tag wrestling is weak. it has been weak, but the dudleys made a lot of people famous in ecw. weakest teams in those matches, yes. weakest teams on the dvds, yes, but they have a legacy and we have to respect that.”

Well that about does it for this weeks article. Check back next week when I will take a look at what happened at tonight’s Slammiverary PPV. In the meantime you can send questions, or comments to me at pwp.chirs@gmail.com. More on This Story...

It’s All About the Wrestling: Goodbye and Good Riddance

A recent injury to Scott Steiner will more than likely force the cancellation of the TNA World Tag Team Title match at Slammiversary between the Dudley’s and the Steiner Brothers. Do I feel bad, yeah for the Steiner’s and I hope Scott gets well soon but really I don’t care at all about Team 3D and I haven’t since they were last in the WWE. Maybe hoping to spark some kind of revival, Devon Dudley is supposedly pushing hard for him and Bubba Ray to return to Vince’s organization.

Personally if I were TNA, I would let them go right now. Let them return to their sacred land of honey and let TNA focus on people who can do more than “Get the Tables”. Sure the table gimmick is fun but it is also considerably played out at this point. I love to watch people go through tables; I enjoy it even more when it is one of these two boobs.

The Dudley’s sit out there and speak about their legacy and how they have beaten everyone and accomplished everything. I have to give it to them on the last one, they have captured all the major belts in American professional wrestling but are they really that good? Every memorable match that they have been in they were the weaker team, regardless of who won the match. The Hardy’s? Better. Edge and Christian? Better. AMW? Better. The New Age Outlaws? Better. LAX? Better. They may have wins against these teams but they certainly were not the better team.

In the late 90s, when extreme wrestling was at its height, the Dudley’s seemed extreme, especially to fans of the relatively tame WWE. Sure some of them watched ECW wrestling and knew they weren’t that extreme but for the most part the Dudley’s caught the average wrestling fan off guard and were able to jump to the top of the pack. But now? Today in 2007? The shtick just doesn’t fly.

Go on Devon head back to papa Vince and collect your paycheck. I’ll be happier when your dumb ass is off TNA TV.

Well that's it for this week, as always you can shoot me an e-mail at pwp.chris@gmail.com. Catch you next week. More on This Story...

It's All About the Wrestling: Why of Why?

I don't understand why they keep doing it but for some reason TNA insists on doing it. What I am talking about is the overflow of gimmick matches that produce for their pay-per-view events. Recently announced was a match between "The Tennessee Cowboy" James Storm and former NFL tight end, Frank Wycheck. I have no problem with Wycheck, the guy went to high school around the corner from where I grew up, Archbishop Ryan High School in Philadelphia, and he was part of one of the most famous plays in NFL history, The Music City Miracle, but neither of these make him qualified to wrestle in a match against a scarecrow, let alone an actual professional wrestler.

Didn't they try something like this recently involving baseball players anyway. What's next Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson tag teaming against LAX? Maybe Daniel Alfredsson vs. Petey Williams? How about Maria Sharapova taking on Gail Kim? OK so the last one actually is one I would pay for but still what is up with the weird celebrity gimmick matches?

These matches hardly ever end good for anyone. Do you remember when David Arquette won the WCW title? Or the triple cage match he was involved in? How about Kevin Federline on WWE programming? Like anybody needed him getting more exposure. For every celebrity appearance that goes well, or at least doesn't suck, we get a handful that don't work. I'm not paying for celebrity wrestling, I'm paying for real wrestling. If I wanted celebrity wrestling I would watch celebrity deathmatch.

Enough with the in-ring celebrity appearances already. Please for the love of all that is good and holy, cool it.

Now onto some reader mail:

I agree with you100 percent from your article. TNA has to many great wrestlers who they have nothing to do with. Petey Williams, LAX, and etc. need to be facing top tier people. They need two hours, and they need to compete against wwe. While having there own night is nice they need to compete against the wwe "b" shows. I love wrestling wwe, tne, even wsx (rip). Wrestling is at the beginining of a great run. Let joe win is wrong though. AJ is the leader, and franchise of tna. He is Shane Douglas.

Peace
Buddy

Thanks for the e-mail Buddy. As much as I like AJ and believe he is the heart and soul of the organization, having AJ win the title (at this point) is counter productive to TNAs expansion goals. Joe is a heavyweight and heavyweights are who the general public expect to be holding the big titles. Having AJ hold the title, something he has done in the past, doesn't advance the company and that is what needs to happen. TNA already has a ton of obstacles in their way, adding AJ as champion isn't one they need to add.

Now, don't get me wrong, I feel AJ is world champion material but in this current transition period, TNA needs something that they can count on. Joe has the look of a champion, he fits in with what the public perceives a champion to be. I do feel that AJ will be champion in the foreseeable future though, because as you said he is AJ is a leader and he is a very important part of both the current success of TNA, as well as the future success of the organization.

Well that's it for this week, as always you can shoot me an e-mail at pwp.chris@gmail.com. Catch you next week.

More on This Story...

It’s All About the Wrestling: Building a Better Tomorrow

TNA is in a spot right now I don’t envy. Their World Title is vacant and they are having a King of the Mountain match at June’s Slammiversary. This in itself isn’t a problem; the crowning of a new champion is always exciting for fans. The problem is that TNA is overflowing with main event talent. While the WWE struggles to fill their main events due to a massive rash of recent injuries, TNA could go weeks without having to use the same two guys in a main event. On the surface this seems like a good thing but it actually places TNA in a bind.

TNA has an opportunity here to advance their brand and build it for tomorrow all at the same time. Having Angle, or Sting, or Jarrett, or even Christian win the title places TNA in a holding pattern and they won’t be growing. The time is ripe for a new champion. The time is ripe for Samoa Joe to hoist the belt in the air and carry this fed on his back like he has been groomed to do.

I myself am not a big Joe fan but one cannot deny his immense talent. If TNA wants to advance their brand beyond, they need to do something new. They need to tell the old brood (Angle and crew) that now is the time of Joe. Now is the time of Styles. These guys are TNA wrestling. Let them carry the load. Allow the veterans to work with younger up and comers building for a better tomorrow while also making your mid-card stronger.

Admittedly two of the big guns have already begun doing this. Sting recently had a long feud with Abyss and is now set to feud with Christopher Daniels. Jeff Jarrett recently began working with Robert Roode and “Showtime” Eric Young. These guys showing an ability to step away from the main event only strengthens TNA.

I’m not suggesting that these big guns stay out of the hair of the champion’s hair either, because they need to be showcased as well. Just not all at once. Now is the time TNA, now is the time to move forward, move forward and build a better tomorrow.

I would also like to extend my deepest sympathies to Jeff Jarrett and his children as they cope with the loss of his wife and their mother, Jill.

As always you can e-mail me with your questions, comments and flames at pwp.chris@gmail.com. I’ll catch you next week.

More on This Story...

It’s All About the Wrestling: The Brothers Steiner, RVD, the Walls of Jericho, TNA Gold and What About a Diet?

At this past Sunday’s TNA pay-per-view, Sacrifice, the dog faced gremlin resurfaced. Rick Steiner came to the defense of his brother Scott and it seems like he might be around for a little while. The pair will have a match against current TNA tag champs, Team 3D, on next week’s Impact and rumors are swirling that they will have another match at the upcoming June pay-per-view, Slammiversary. Bringing Rick in only helps the TNA tag division, which has been struggling over the past few months.

Rick also helps out his brother the Genetic Freak. Scott seems to have a new commitment to wrestling but is still at his best with a partner and he has always worked well with his brother. The Steiner Brothers are a storied wrestling team and while some may see this as TNA trying to recreate the past, I only see good things for the future. It’s about the wrestling and the brothers do that quite well.

Someone else who does wrestling quite well is Rob Van Dam. RVD recently rejected a WWE contract proposal and the WWE has now released him. His no compete clause in his contract prevents him from joining TNA immediately but it is thought that he wants to take off the summer anyway. Could RVD be coming to TNA this fall? It’s very possible, especially considering TNA’s relaxed schedule.

In addition to RVD being released the WWE has also released Sabu. It is thought he will be making his way to TNA. If both men sign on to TNA it is thought that they would begin feuding right away. Their possible additions add a lot of talent and experience to an already loaded roster.

But one guy both TNA and WWE would love to sign is Y2J, Chris Jericho. Jericho is thought to be interested in returning to wrestling but who needs him more? If you asked me that question a year ago I would have said TNA. Today though, I would say WWE. With Triple H still out and injuries keeping The Undertaker and Kennedy on the shelf the WWE could use some additional star power. I can also say that if Jericho were to resign with the WWE, I would tune into watch him, something none of their other stars can get me to do.

If Jericho did sign with TNA though, I am not sure he would get the title shot he is of course going to want. The roster is already flooded with main event talent, adding another legit title contender just pollutes the mix too much. That said I am sure he would like to get his paws on the sweet new title belts that debuted on this past Impact (the NWA titles reverted to them). I like the fact that the title will be up for grabs at Slammiversary as well, I would have preferred an actual title tournament but the King of the Mountain match will have to suffice.

Finally, what the hell has happened to Raven? The guy was one of my favorite wrestlers from ECW and while his ridiculous gimmick over the last few months, with Serotonin, has been odd I was OK with it. That is until he came out to the ring on Impact, looking like a tattooed version of the Pillsbury Dough Boy. I’m having a terrible vision of a giant sized, shirtless Raven walking through the streets of New York. I mean, I know he was never the most in shape dude in wrestling but what the hell happened to him.

As always you can e-mail me with your questions, comments and flames at pwp.chris@gmail.com. I’ll catch you next week.

More on This Story...

Scorekeeping: Sacrifice

TNA’s Sacrifice pay-per-view took place this past Sunday and it needed to continue the momentum built up by TNA over the last few weeks of good Impact shows.

Opener: Chris Sabin vs. “Black Machismo” Jay Lethal vs. Sonjay Dutt

If there is something that TNA has done well over the last two pay-per-views it is open the show with a very good match. It was a little odd that despite having two X-Division matches on the card they led off with the championship but the move was one that quickly brought you into the show. All three competitors were flying all over the place with insane high impact moves, surprisingly Chris Sabin retained the X-Division title. B+

Mid-Card: Robert Roode vs. Jeff Jarrett

Staying out of the main event circle and working with up and comer Robert Roode, Jeff Jarrett got his biggest crowd ovation in a long time. It helped that the storyline for the match was actually well fleshed out, something a lot of the matches in Sacrifice benefited from. Both Roode and Jarrett put on a very well wrestled match, with Roode getting the overall win. “Showtime” Eric Young came out to Jarrett’s defense after the match receiving quite the crowd pop as well. C+

Mid-Card: Christopher Daniels vs. Rhino

Christopher Daniels has had a massive transformation from a couple of months ago. He is still the great wrestler he was but much like AJ Styles he has had a personality shift, unlike Styles I don’t think it suits him. His opponent Rhino has feuded extensively with Daniels’ former partner, Styles, so I knew what to expect going into this match. As expected Rhino had the large size advantage but being the lumbering fool he is allowed for Daniels to get the slip on him and win the match via shady means. Much like Rhino’s matches with Styles, Rhino extracted revenge after the match. C

Mid-Card: Basham and Damaja vs. Kip James

Early in the show they showed a clip of the Outlaws (err… VKM) getting attacked by Basham and Damaja and Road Dogg was rushed to the hospital with a head injury making this a handicapped match. Billy held his own against Christy Hemme’s clowns for a good while but eventually succumbed to their greater numbers. Lance Hoyt came out to defend the Bad Ass after the match had been decided. C

Gimmick: Texas Death Match

Last month at the Lockdown pay-per-view James Storm and Chris Harris were involved in one of the worst matches I have seen in my life, the Blindfold Cage match, so I was really apprehensive about these two squaring off again in another gimmick match. Much to my surprise these two put on one of the best Hardcore matches in recent memory. The blood was flowing, there were tables, there were chairs, there were beer bottles. The two were a bloody mess by the end but unlike last month when the chants of boring and “Fire Russo” were flooding the speakers this time only chants of “TNA” and “This is awesome” filled the crowd. Harris got the win after smacking Storm over the head with a bottle but I don’t think it would have mattered who got the win because the match was that good. B+

Mid-Card: Jerry Lynn vs. Tiger Mask vs. Alex Shelly vs. Senshi

This match introduced TNA to Japanese sensation Tiger Mask. I personally think this match, while note being anywhere as good as the X-Division Title match, should have led off the night. Like most matches involving the X-Division this match was filled with crazy moves and lots of highflying action. Tiger Mask had some great moves but looks only slightly less ridiculous than Shark Boy. I hope they aren’t planning on pushing his character too far as it doesn’t really fit well with TNA’s overall persona. Jerry Lynn got the win by rolling up Alex Shelly. C+

Mid-Card: Team 3D vs. LAX vs. Scott Steiner and Tomko

I don’t like three-way tag matches. I particularly don’t like three-way tag matches for championships but I can see why they wanted to do it this way because Team 3D and LAX was getting old. I have said recently I like the teaming of Steiner and Tomko but it seems like that dysfunctional pairing has come to an end as the two could not get along during the match and it turned ugly afterwards. The match itself was OK, it was nothing special but nothing overly good about it either. The best thing about the match actually took place after the match when Steiner and Tomko arguing over their defeat, after Tomko was pinned by Brother Ray, went to blows and Rick Steiner came out to help his brother. I’m hoping Rick is around for a bit as the Steiner Brothers are one of my favorite tag teams of all time. C+

Mid-Card: Samoa Joe vs. AJ Styles

Pitting these two against each other is never a bad idea. Problem was I don’t remember anything memorable from this match. It was well wrestled but then again when isn’t a match with these two well wrestled? I honestly just don’t remember anything special about this match. C

Main Event: Christian Cage vs. Kurt Angle vs. Sting

I had some problems with them pitting these three against each other as I felt it was time for a solo championship. After watching the other two titles not change hands during the show I felt that Christian would retain which was what I wanted anyway. All three put on a fantastic match but the ending knocks it down a peg. Sting has Christian pinned, Angle has the ankle lock on Sting and the three count for Sting comes in a moment before Sting taps out (to a new referee). Somehow though Angle gets the title. I’m sure they will address the situation on this weeks Impact but the ending left a bad taste in my mouth. B

Overall TNA put on an entertaining show. Score wise Sacrifice comes in just short of Lockdown with a 2.61, although unlike Lockdown the matches were consistently good but there was less great moments. The biggest difference I saw was the storylines actually playing well into almost every match, which is a big improvement over past TNA shows. More on This Story...

It's All About the Wrestling: Double J, The Macho Man, Showcasing and Sacrifice

One of the great things about being a fan is that we can change our mind when the wind blows. A few weeks ago I wrote an article entitled “Two Words, One Man”, which heralded the dreaded return of Jeff Jarrett. The entire article was about how I despised him. My hatred for him was not born out of his being a heel character because I have never liked Jeff Jarrett. That did not change when he returned from his self-imposed hiatus to become the fifth member of Team Angle at the TNA Lockdown pay-per-view. That did not change when he gift-wrapped a title shot for Sting at the Lockdown pay-per-view. It did not even change when he cut a heart felt in ring promo after Lockdown. No, I hated Jeff Jarrett but something happened and now I can’t help but like the guy.

Sure his storyline for the upcoming Sacrifice pay-per-view is a little weak but it is good to see Jarrett helping to push to promising young guys, Robert Roode and Eric Young, instead of pushing himself. Double J’s tenure with TNA has been pretty much been Jarrett himself pushing the Jeff Jarrett agenda. This new willingness to help make the overall product better is something that can be respected and appreciated. And boy was that guitar shot to Ms. Brooks sweet.

While Jeff Jarrett has a long history in both TNA and wrestling in general, one young TNA star doesn’t have any legacy to pull off of so he has adopted a fantastic gimmick, all the while putting on a tribute to one of the best wrestlers ever. I am speaking about Jay “Black Machismo” Lethal. Lethal is quite the promising young star and has recently been highlighted in TNA’s X-Division because of his new Macho Man impersonation. I’ve heard many people complaining about the gimmick, calling it stupid and the like, but really the gimmick was stupid when the great Randy Savage did it.

My only complaint with Lethal is that he doesn’t pull off the flying elbow drop quite as well as Savage did. The real Macho Man seemed to be able to suspend himself in mid-air as he came in to drop the elbow, an even more impressive feat when you look at his size. Lethal though is much, much smaller, yet he seems to fly twice as fast towards his awaiting prey. Regardless with a little more work, and maybe a valet, Lethal could really take off with this gimmick. It’s nice to see TNA showcasing some of their young talent.

Black Machismo though isn’t the only one TNA should be showcasing, they should be featuring their X-Division more and not in goofy gimmick matches that make little to no sense either. What TNA needs are more matches like the Alex Shelley/Chris Sabin vs. Black Machismo/Sonjay Dutt tag match from the last Impact. From the fantastic teamwork to the insane moves, this match had it all. It had everything wrestling fans truly want, because it was real wrestling. If TNA wants to bring in more fans they need to showcase these types of matches on a more frequent basis.

Recently Brother Ray (of Team 3D or the Dudleys, take your pick) said that TNA seemed to be trying to hard and should maybe take a “less is more” approach. I have to totally agree with him. In the recent months TNA has been trying to fit as many of their stars on Impact, in the short amount of time they are allotted each week. Not enough story and not enough wrestling equals a less appealing overall product. If TNA could give us a tag match like the one from this past Impact, the product as a whole would be better for it

If the overall product is better, the buy rate for their pay-per-views will be better and that is where TNA needs to make up ground. Sure they don’t have the install base that WWE has but because of this they need to up the percentage of people who watch their product and also buy their pay-per-views. The upcoming Sacrifice pay-per-view should be a something good for those that do buy TNA pay-per-views though.

This Sunday (Mother’s Day), TNA will put on the Sacrifice pay-per-view. All three championships will be on the line. Unfortunately all three championship matches will be three way dances so TNA will be flexing their gimmick muscle yet again. The X-Division championship will be up for grabs as Chris Sabin defends his title against both Jay “Black Machismo” Lethal and Sonjay Dutt. The NWA tag titles will be on the line as current champs, Team 3D battle against former champs LAX and the dysfunctional team of Scott Steiner and Tomko. While Christian Cage must defend his world championship against both Kurt Angle and the Icon, Sting. The most interesting match to me though is the mid-card bought between AJ Styles and Samoa Joe. Both these guys exemplify what TNA is striving to be and I expect this match to be the best of the night.

As always you can e-mail me with your questions, comments and flames at pwp.chris@gmail.com. I’ll catch you next week with a score sheet for Sacrifice and another It’s All About the Wrestling. More on This Story...

It's All About the Wrestling: Cutting Ties, Gimmicks and the Frankensteiner

I know that's a mouthful up there but I didn't have a catchy title for this little bit.

TNA has severed ties with the popular independent promotion Ring of Honor, as well as other indy promotions. Many are taken aback by the decision to sever the ties as many top name stars have wrestled on the indy circuit in the past. A scheduled return of Samoa Joe to ROH had to be canceled. While I understand the fans being upset, I also totally understand the business side of it, and TNA could not with any sense of growing their business allow their stars to continue to perform in ROH.

Ring of Honor recently announced that they were going to start PPV services as well as video on demand. Would Vince allow Triple H and HBK show up at an Impact PPV? Hell no. So why should TNA be expected to allow their stars to perform on a competing promotions PPV? They shouldn't. While we as fans want to be entertained and given the best possible product for our money, TNA, ROH and WWE are all still businesses out to take a piece of the pro-wrestling money pie.

Speaking of money, as some of you know I bought the Lockdown PPV. The whole PPV is a giant gimmick, every match takes place inside the six sides of steel, so why do we need to pile gimmicks on top of gimmicks? Electrified cage, blindfolds? Who needs this crap. Team 3D and LAX did not think the match was going to work and guess what? They were right. It might have worked in 1987 but not in 2007. So after an entire PPV filled with gimmicks we return to normal at the Sacrifice PPV right? Well not entirely. Sacrifice is going to feature not one, not two, but three triple threat matches (a triple threat of triple threat matches) as well as a Texas Death Match (whatever the hell that is).

One of those triple threat matches at Sacrifice will feature Scott Steiner and his new tag team partner Tomko. Since Steiner returned from his short hiatus I have been very impressed with his in ring work and partnered with Tomko he has actually strung together a few really good promos. Not only that but at the Lockdown PPV he busted out the Frankensteiner and he says its out of retirement. This turn of workmanship is a good thing for TNA and hopefully he will keep it up.

One last thing before I close out for the week. I only caught the last 10 or 11 minutes of Impact this week but what I saw (The Angle/Sting vs. Cage/Styles match) was very good. Cage and Styles work very well together and I still think that the plan is once Christian drops the belt to team the two of them together as a tag team and make a run at bolstering that division. Overall it was just good old school wrestling which is what TNA does best. More on This Story...

TNA: Wasted Opportunity

Wasted Opportunity. That is what TNA should have called Impact last night. Now don't get me wrong, I thought Impact was very good last night, one of the best of the year thus far. TNA did a lot of things right last night. Most importantly they got the wrestling right. Yeah, there were three crap finishes but the matches before the finishes were actually really good. The promos didn't run on too long and were funny and entertaining while advancing the story lines but they primarily focused on the wrestling.

But they missed an opportunity to do something which just isn't done much anymore. They missed the chance to have a major title change hands on prime time television. For too long now, both in the WWE and TNA, title changes have been reserved for pay-per view events. Yeah, every once in a while a belt changes hands but it doesn't happen often and when it does the fed plays down the title change. Last night TNA had a great opportunity to do something special and advance the storyline going into the Sacrifice PPV. Yet they screwed the pooch.

Do I think Sting should be holding the number one contender's slot when it is pretty apparent they want him working with the younger guys to help them get over? No. But they made their bed at Lockdown by having him get the win, so why not advance your storyline in a positive manner? I mean they set it up perfectly. Angle and Sting attempt to settle their differences the old fashioned way. Christian and gang interferes, brutalizing Angle. Cornette then books the title match for the main event that very night.

By having Sting win the belt on Impact would turn some heads. But instead they take the well worn path and have Angle interfere allowing Christian to keep the belt. This sets up their triple threat match for Sacrifice, which leaked only a couple of days after Lockdown. But if Sting had won the title the triple threat match could still have been had and I think it would have been much better. Bear with me a moment longer and let's say Sting won the title. Sting offers Angle the title shot based on the events from Impact. Christian complains he should get his rematch. And poof, there is your triple threat match and it comes off of a nice gesture to the fans as well but instead we get more of the same. What a waste.

On a side note, the man who boils my blood, Jeff Jarrett got his largest crowd pop in years when he came out to help Eric Young and the guitar shot on Ms. Brooks was priceless. If they plan on having Double J work with the younger stars, much like their plan for Sting, then I think even I may be able to stomach him. More on This Story...